Joint and knob assembly and appliance having joint and knob assembly

ABSTRACT

A joint, a knob assembly, and an appliance having a joint and a knob assembly are provided. The joint may include a housing, a first shaft support, a second shaft support, and a coupling shaft. A slot having a predetermined width extending in a circumferential direction of the housing and a predetermined length extending in a longitudinal direction of the housing may be formed in the housing. The coupling shaft provided in the second support may include a rotary shaft rotatably inserted into the slot. A stopper may be formed to protrude from an outside of the rotary shaft, and a position of the stopper inside the slot may be changed according to rotation of the rotating shaft. The stopper may be provided in the slot so that the stopper interferes with an inner wall of the housing formed by the slot at a predetermined position.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to KoreanApplication No. 10-2017-0094806 filed on Jul. 26, 2017, whose entiredisclosure is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

A joint and a knob assembly and an appliance having a joint and knobassembly are disclosed herein.

2. Background

Cooking appliances are appliances that cook food or other items(hereinafter “food”), and may be installed or provided in a kitchenspace. Such cooking appliances may be classified in various waysaccording to, for example, heat sources used therein, forms or shapesthereof, and types of fuel. Cooking appliances may be classified as anopen-type and/or a closed-type according to a form of space in whichfood is placed. Closed-type cooking appliances may include an oven or amicrowave, for example, and open-type cooking appliances may include acooktop or a hob, for example.

Closed-type cooking appliances may be cooking appliances in which aspace in which food may be placed is sealed, and the sealed space may beheated to cook food. Open-type cooking appliances may be cookingappliances in which food or a container filled with food may be placedin an open space, and the food or the food container may be heated tocook the food.

A cooking compartment, which may be a space sealed when food is placedtherein, may be provided in closed-type cooking appliances. Such acooking compartment may be a space in which food may be cooked. A heatsource may be provided inside or outside the cooking compartment to heatthe cooking compartment.

Complex cooking appliances, in which a closed-type cooking appliance andan open-type cooking appliance may be installed and a plurality of heatsources may be combined so that various foods may be cooked and aplurality of foods may be simultaneously cooked, have been proposed. Ina complex cooking appliance, an open-type cooking appliance may beprovided above a closed-type cooking appliance. A plurality of heatersor burners may be installed in the open-type cooking appliance to allowa plurality of foods or dishes to be cooked simultaneously.

A user may use a closed-type cooking appliance when barbecuing, baking,or roasting meat or fish, for example, and may use an open-type cookingappliance when cooking by heating a container filled with food.Open-type cooking appliances may be a gas stove, which is an appliancethat cooks food using flames generated when gas is burned.

There may be various methods in which a user may adjust an intensity ofthe flames. Among the various methods, a method in which a heating poweris adjusted using a knob that is rotated about a predetermined rotaryshaft and adjusting a rotational amount of the knob may be used. Such aknob may also be connected to a valve configured to mechanically controla flow amount of gas to adjust an opening amount of the valve. A method,in which a rotational amount of a knob may be electronically measuredand an opening amount of a valve may be electronically controlled basedon a measured result, may also be applied to such a knob.

In the structure in which a knob mechanically adjusts the opening amountof a valve, the knob and the valve may be connected with or to a rotaryshaft, and a rotary force of the knob may be transmitted to the valvevia the rotary shaft to adjust the opening amount of the valve. The knobmay be installed to be rotatable about the rotary shaft, but itsappearance may be degraded due to a size error in a manufacturingprocess or an assembly deviation in an assembly process and a failure inoperation of the knob may also be caused.

One of the reasons for the above phenomenon is that a rotary shaft maynot be properly aligned. That is, for a knob to be accurately aligned ata regular position, a rotary shaft connecting the knob and a valveshould be correspondingly aligned, and a deviation may occur between anangle at which the valve and the rotary shaft are connected and an angleat which the knob and the rotary shaft are connected due to a size errorin the manufacturing process or an assembly deviation in the assemblyprocess. Because of this, the knob may be installed at or in a deviatedposition.

As one of methods for solving the above problem, a method of using atool to absorb or fix the deviation between the angle at which the valveand the rotary shaft are connected and the angle at which the knob andthe rotary shaft are connected may be used. A joint may be an example ofsuch a tool. A joint, which may be a power transmission device, may beused to transmit power from a drive member or drive to a drive memberwhen the driving member and the driven member are not aligned and arebent at a predetermined angle from each other.

Referring to FIG. 1, a joint may include two pairs of yokes 3 and 3′having shafts 1 and 1′ that protrude from upper and lower surfaces andouter surfaces formed to be opposite each other in or on a cylindricalcurved surface, a connector 5 which serves as a spider provided in aspace between the yokes 3 and 3′, and a rivet 7 configured to passthrough the pairs of yokes 3 and 3′ opposite each other and theconnector 5 to connect the pair of yokes 3 and 3′ and the connector 5.The joint having the above structure may be widely used in which powerof a power generation device may have to be transmitted to anothermember, for example, in a power transmission device of a vehicle, adrive device of a machine, and power transmissions ofelectrically-driven and manually-driven tools.

However, such a joint may have disadvantages in that weight and cost maybe high due to being manufactured with a metal material with highstrength to withstand a high load, an angle of connection between theyokes 3 and 3′ may have to be manually adjusted, and an additional taskfor fixing the adjusted angle of connection may be necessary. When theabove-described commercial joint is applied to a cooking appliance,weight and manufacturing costs of a product may be increased, assemblingability may be degraded, and a problem in which a knob may be misaligneddue to the joint may occur when the angle of connection between theyokes 3 and 3′ is not accurately adjusted.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The embodiments will be described in detail with reference to thefollowing drawings in which like reference numerals refer to likeelements wherein:

FIG. 1 is a view showing a structure of a related art joint;

FIG. 2 is a view of a knob assembly of a related art cooking appliance;

FIG. 3 is a side view of a coupling state of a knob assembly accordingto an embodiment;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the knob assembly of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the coupling state of the knobassembly of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of a knob ring according to anembodiment;

FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view of rear surfaces of some components ofthe knob ring of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a rear view showing an assembly structure of the knob assemblyof FIG. 3;

FIG. 9 is a view of a manipulation state in which a knob ring of theknob assembly of FIG. 8 is rotated counterclockwise;

FIG. 10 is a view of a manipulation state in which the knob ring of theknob assembly of FIG. 8 is rotated clockwise;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a joint according to an embodiment;

FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view of the joint of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view showing an internal structure of thejoint of FIG. 11;

FIG. 14 is a view showing an operation example of the joint of FIG. 11;and

FIG. 15 is a view showing another operation example of the joint of FIG.11.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIG. 2, a burner and a knob assembly of an appliance mayinclude a valve assembly 190 configured to adjust a supply amount ofgas, and the valve assembly 190 may be operated by a knob 110 providedat or on a front surface of a front panel c to adjust an amount of gassupplied to the burner. The valve assembly 190 and the knob 110 may beconnected by an adjusting shaft 194 installed to connect between thevalve assembly 190 and the knob 110. When the knob 110 is rotated whilethe valve assembly 190 and the knob 110 are connected to each other, arotary force thereof may be transmitted to the valve assembly 190through the adjusting shaft 194 so that the valve assembly 190 may bemanipulated. By manipulation of the valve assembly 190, an openingamount of a valve may be adjusted. For example, a structure in which anopening amount of a valve may be changed to adjust a heating power of aburner may be provided.

The knob 110 and a knob ring 120 configured to surround the knob 110 inan annular shape may be provided at or outside the front panel c. Theknob 110 may be installed to be rotatable in a horizontal direction, andthe adjusting shaft 194 may be coupled to the knob 110 to be rotatableby interlocking with rotation of the knob 110. The adjusting shaft 194having one axial side coupled to the knob 110 may be rotated byinterlocking with rotation of the knob 110, and a rotary forcetransmitted through such an adjusting shaft 194 may power formanipulation of the valve assembly 190.

The valve assembly 190 may be manufactured, for example, by welding acast. In manufacturing the valve assembly 190, the adjusting shaft 194may have a position tolerance. Such a tolerance of the adjusting shaft194 may cause a deviation in position of the knob 110 assembled to theadjusting shaft 194. The position deviation of the knob 110 may increaseas a length of the adjusting shaft 194 becomes larger. That is, thetolerance of the adjusting shaft 194 may be directly related to anassembly tolerance of the knob 110 and the knob ring 120 assembled tothe adjusting shaft 194. Referring to FIG. 2, accurate or non-deviatedassembly positions of the knob 110 and the knob ring 120 are marked bydotted lines. However, when the tolerance of the adjusting shaft 194occurs, the assembly positions of the knob 110 and the knob ring 120 maybe changed, as marked by the solid lines.

A plurality of burners may be provided in a single cooking appliance. Insuch a case, the knob 110 and the knob ring 120 connected to each valvemay be provided with predetermined alignment. However, when toleranceoccurs in each adjusting shaft 194, the knob 110 and the knob ring 120may be misaligned, and an exterior appearance or quality may bedegraded. The tolerance of the adjusting shaft 194 may cause anoperation failure as well as a defect in the exterior. Due tomisalignment of the adjusting shaft 194, if rotating the knob 110 is notsmoothly performed, the knob 110 may become stuck and may not return toits original position.

To solve the above-described problems, the knob 110 and the knob ring120 may be assembled at positions so that an exterior appearance of acooking appliance may be improved, and an operation failure of the knob110 may be reduced.

Hereinafter, elements of a knob assembly according to an embodiment aredescribed. A structure of a knob assembly provided in a cookingappliance, which is one kind of appliance, is described as an example.However, the embodiments are not limited to a cooking appliance and maybe applied to various other types of appliances having a burner. Forexample, other than a cooking appliance, the embodiments may be appliedto any one of various types of appliances having a burner, such as aheater and a dryer.

Referring to FIG. 3 to FIG. 5, a knob 110 may be connected to a valveshaft 194 a of a valve assembly 190 provided to adjust a heating power.The knob 110 may be configured with a no-return type rotary switch, forexample. Such a knob 110 may be provided in which a position thereofafter the user rotates the knob 110 may be maintained without change,and an output of a corresponding heating element may be recognizedaccording to an angle at which the knob 110 is rotated. For example, ina gas burner, a valve assembly 190 may be a valve that adjusts a gassupply amount, and in an electric stove or an induction stove, the valveassembly 190 may be an output adjusting means, for example, a variableresistor, configured to adjust an output.

As described above, the knob 110 may be connected to the valve shaft 194a of the valve assembly 190. In a knob assembly structure of a cookingappliance, the knob 110 may be directly coupled to a valve shaft.However, in such a structure in which the knob 110 is directly coupledto the valve shaft 194 a, misalignment due to tolerance of the valveshaft 194 a may be directly transferred to the knob 110, andaccordingly, a problem in which the knob 110 and the knob ring 120 aremisaligned may occur.

In the knob assembly of the embodiment, a structure in which a knobshaft 194 b may be coupled to the knob 110, instead of the knob 110being directly coupled to the valve shaft 194 a, via a joint 170 may beprovided. The joint 170 may absorb a position error of the valve shaft194 a between the knob shaft 194 b and the valve shaft 194 a and mayperform an operation of transferring a rotating operation and a pressingoperation of the knob 110 to the valve shaft 194 a. A shaft connectionbody formed by connection between the valve shaft 194 a of the valveassembly 190 and the knob shaft 194 b coupled to the knob 110 may bereferred to as an adjusting shaft 194.

The knob 110 may include a protruding handle portion having a circularshape. Although the handle portion may protrude in a bar shape as shown,for example, a shape of the handle portion may be changed to variousother shapes. The knob 110 may be manufactured, for example, with asynthetic resin injection material or manufactured by processing a metalmaterial. The material and shape of the knob 110 may be changed invarious ways.

The knob ring 120 may be provided at an outer peripheral surface of theknob 110 to improve an exterior around the knob 110. The knob ring 120may support the knob 110 and may improve quality of an exterior of thecooking appliance by finishing an exterior of the knob 110. The knobring 120 may be provided to serve as a timer manipulating switch and adisplay configured to display, for example, time of a timer and a sizeor amount of heating power. The knob ring 120 may be installed to berotatable independently from the knob 110, and the time of the timer maybe set by rotating the knob ring 120. A display 123 may be provided atthe knob ring 120, and the time of the timer and the size of heatingpower may be displayed through the display 123.

A first rotation sensing part or sensor E1 configured to sense arotational amount of the knob 110 and a second rotation sensing part orsensor E2 configured to sense a rotational amount of the knob ring 120may be provided in the knob assembly of this embodiment. The firstrotating sensor E1 may sense a rotational amount of the adjusting shaft194 connected to the knob 110. The second rotation sensor E2 may senserotation of an actuating ring 150 connected to the knob ring 120.

The knob 110 and the knob ring 120 may be installed to be exposed to orat the outside of front panel c of a cooking appliance, and heatingpower or time of a timer, for example, may be displayed on the display123 provided at the knob ring 120 installed. The heating power displayedon the display 123 may be a value calculated based on a value of asensed rotational amount of the knob 110, and the time of the timerdisplayed on the display 123 may be a value calculated based on a valueof a sensed rotational amount of the knob ring 120.

The display 123 may be configured so that a heating power-displayingportion and a timer time-displaying portion may be separately provided.However, the embodiments are not limited thereto and, for example, aheating power or a timer time may be selectively displayed on thedisplay 123. For example, the display 123 may be operated such that onlya heating power may be displayed when a timer is not set, and a heatingpower may be displayed for a predetermined amount of time and then atimer time may be displayed for a predetermined amount of time when thetimer is set.

In this case, color of light when a heating power is displayed and colorof light when a timer time is displayed may be made different so that auser may easily recognize which of the heating power and the timer timea displayed number may be indicating. For example, the heating power maybe displayed with a red color, and the timer time may be displayed witha white or blue color. When both the heating power and the timer timeare displayed, the heating power may be displayed for 2 seconds and thenthe timer time may be displayed for the next 2 seconds. Both the heatingpower and the timer time may be displayed through the knob assembly.Information necessary for using a cooking appliance may be effectivelyprovided to a user without a separate display being installed at thefront panel c.

The actuating ring 150 may be coupled to a rear surface of the knob ring120 and may be provided to integrally rotate with the knob ring 120. Arotational amount of the actuating ring 150 and a rotational amount ofthe knob ring 120 may be the same, and therefore, manipulation of theknob ring 120 may be sensed by sensing the rotational amount of theactuating ring 150. For this, a knob ring gear part or gear G2 may beprovided at the actuating ring 150.

The actuating ring 150 may include a coupling shaft part or shaft 151, aflange part or flange 152, and awing part or wing 153. The couplingshaft 151 may be a portion that passes through a support frame 140 andmay be supported to be rotatable by the support frame 140. The couplingshaft 151 may be formed in a shape of a circular tube, and a spacethrough which the adjusting shaft 194 may pass may be formed inside thecoupling shaft 151. The coupling shaft 151 may be coupled to the knobring 120 via the front panel c and the support frame 140, and in thisway, coupling that allows the actuating ring 150 to be integrallyrotated with the knob ring 120 may be performed.

The flange 152 may be a flange that protrudes from a rear end of thecoupling shaft 151 outward in a diametric direction of the couplingshaft 151. With respect to the frontward panel c, a direction toward theoutside of the front panel c may be referred to as a front or a firstdirection, and a direction toward the valve assembly 190 may be referredto as a rearward or a second direction. By forming a flat surface cominginto contact with the support frame 140 behind the support frame 140,the flange 152 may prevent deviation of the actuating ring 150 in thefrontward direction and may allow the actuating ring 150 to be stablyrotated without swinging in the frontward and the rearward directions.

The wing 153 may be formed to protrude from an outer peripheral surfaceof the coupling shaft 151 outward in a radial direction of the couplingshaft 151. Unlike the flange 152 formed in the shape of a disc thatsurrounds the coupling shaft 151, the wing 153 may be formed in a shapeof a bar extending outward in the diametrical direction of the couplingshaft 151. The wing 153 may be inserted into a fixing frame 160. Such awing 153 may move within a movement-possible region or movement rangeinside the fixing frame 160, and movement thereof may be limited from apoint interfering with an upper inner wall or a lower inner wall of thefixing frame 160.

When the movement range of the wing 153 is limited by the fixing frame160, an angle of rotation in both directions of the actuating ring 150may be limited to a predetermined range. The wing 153 may also include acoupling portion between elastic members or returning springs S1, S2 andthe actuating ring 150.

The support frame 140 may be coupled to the front panel c and maysupport the knob ring 120. The knob 110 and the knob ring 120 may becoupled to aligned positions of the front panel c, and the front panel cmay be formed of a thin metal plate. When a hole h is formed in thefront panel c, and the knob ring 120 is rotated by being directly rubbedagainst the hole h, a problem in which the knob ring 120 may be cut dueto the front panel c may occur.

A structure in which the support frame 140 may be installed behind thehole h formed in the front panel c, and the knob ring 120 may be rotatedwhile the knob ring 120 is supported by the support frame 140 so thatgeneration of friction between the knob ring 120 and the front panel cduring rotation of the knob ring 120 may be suppressed may be provided.The support frame 140 may include a frame main body 141, a through-hole143, and a support part or support 145. The frame main body 141 may forma frame of the support frame 140 and may be coupled to the front panel cto be provided behind the front panel c.

The through-hole 143 corresponding to an outer diameter of the actuatingring 150 coupled to the knob ring 120 may be formed to pass through aninner side of the frame main body 141. Such a through-hole 143 may forma path for the coupling shaft 151 of the actuating ring 150 to passthrough the support frame 140 in the frontward and rearward directions.

The support 145 forming a sidewall configured to support the couplingshaft 151 to be rotatable around the through-hole 143 may be formedoutside the through-hole 143. The actuating ring 150 may be seated onthe support 145, and accordingly, the actuating ring 150 may besupported by the support frame 140 to be rotated at a predeterminedposition.

The knob ring 120 coupled to such an actuating ring 150 may be supportedto be rotated about a predetermined axis on the support frame 140 by asupport structure between the support frame 140 and the actuating ring150. Because a position of the knob ring 120 is determined by thesupport frame 140, and the support frame 140 is fastened to the frontpanel c, the position of the knob ring 120 may be fixed with respect tothe front panel c.

The support frame 140 may surround the outer peripheral surface of theactuating ring 150 and may support the actuating ring 150 to berotatable about the predetermined axis. The support frame 140 may becoupled to a guide rod 210 provided at a burner frame 200 to which thevalve assembly 190 may be fixed. The guide rod 210 may be provided tofix the burner frame 200 and the support frame 140, and the supportframe 140 coupled to such a guide rod 210 may be fixed to or at apredetermined position with respect to the burner frame 200.

The fixing frame 160 may be provided to prevent the actuating ring 150from being deviated rearward toward the inside of the appliance from thefixing frame 160, may be installed at a rear or second side of the frontpanel c, and may be fastened and fixed to the support frame 140 by afastening means, such as, for example, a screw. The fixing frame 160 mayalso restrict a range of rotation of the actuating ring 150. Such afixing frame 160 may limit rotation of the actuating ring 150 and theknob ring 120 so that the actuating ring 150 and the knob ring 120 maybe rotatable in the horizontal direction only within a predeterminedangle range.

The fixing frame 160 may be formed, for example, in a shape similar tothat of a bow tie. In the fixing frame 160, portions corresponding towings of a bow may be portions configured to limit rotation of theactuating ring 150 so that the actuating ring 150 may be rotatablewithin a predetermined angle range, and a portion connecting both wingsmay be a portion configured to prevent rearward deviation of theactuating ring 150.

The fixing frame 160 may include a fixing part or portion 161 and a winginsertion part or portion 163. The fixing portion 161 may be coupled tothe support frame 140 and may support the actuating ring 150. Such afixing portion 161 may correspond to a portion connecting both wings inthe fixing frame 160 formed in the shape similar to that of a bow tie.For example, the fixing portion 161 may be provided at a rear or secondside of the flange 152 of the actuating ring 150 and may be coupled tothe frame main body 141, with the flange 152 being providedtherebetween, to support the actuating ring 150 in a direction in whichthe flange 152 and the wing 153 may be adhered to the frame main body141.

In this way, a position of the actuating ring 150 in the frontward andrearward directions may be restricted by a front or first side of theflange 152 supported by the support frame 140 and a rear or second sideof the flange 152 supported by the fixing frame 160. The actuating ring150 may be rotated at a predetermined position while the positionthereof in the frontward and rearward directions may be restricted asabove, and the actuating ring 150 may stably fix a rotary position ofthe knob ring 120.

The wing insertion portion 163 may be provided at each of both sides ofthe fixing portion 161. Such wing insertion portions 163 may correspondto portions corresponding to the wings of the bow in the fixing frame160 formed in the shape similar to that of a bow tie. In each of thewing insertion portion 163, the wing 153 of the actuating ring 150 maybe inserted to be rotated within a predetermined angle range. That is,the wing 153 inserted into the wing insertion portion 163 may movewithin a movement-possible region or movement range inside the winginsertion portion 163, and movement thereof is limited from a pointinterfering with an upper inner wall or a lower inner wall of the winginsertion portion 163. When the movement range of the wing 153 islimited by the wing insertion portion 163 as above, an angle of rotationin both directions of the actuating ring 150 may be limited to apredetermined range.

A bearing shell 130 may serve as a bearing that facilitates manipulationof the knob ring 120. Such a bearing shell 130 may include a cylindricalpart or portion 134 formed in a cylindrical shape and a disc 132 bentfrom the cylindrical portion 134 and protruding in a radial direction.The cylindrical portion 134 may be inserted between the outer peripheralsurface of the actuating ring 150 coupled to the knob ring 120 and aninner peripheral surface of the fixing frame 160. Such a cylindricalportion 134 may reduce friction between the actuating ring 150 and thefixing frame 160.

The disc 132 may be inserted between the front panel c and the knob ring120. Such a disc 132 may reduce friction between the knob ring 120 andthe front panel c. The disc 132 may also cause the knob ring 120 to bespaced apart from the front panel c at a predetermined interval tosuppress the front panel c from being scratched due to the knob ring 120coming into contact with the front panel c during manipulation of theknob ring 120.

The knob ring 120 may be provided in the form in which a return-typemanipulation may be possible. For example, the knob ring 120 may beprovided in the form in which the knob ring 120 may be manipulated to berotatable within a predetermined angle range clockwise orcounterclockwise and then may be returned to its original position whenan external force is released.

The returning springs S1 and S2 may provide a restoration force forreturning the knob ring 120 to an initial position. Such returningsprings S1 and S2 may include a first returning spring S1 configured toprovide a restoration force in a clockwise direction and a secondreturning spring S2 configured to provide a restoration force in acounterclockwise direction. For example, each of the returning springsS1 and S2 may be in the form of a coil spring having one or a firstlongitudinal side fixed to the actuating ring 150 and another or secondlongitudinal side fixed to the support frame 140.

Wing-side coupling parts or couplers 155 to which the one longitudinalsides of the returning springs S1 and S2 may be coupled may be providedat respective wings 153 of the actuating ring 150, and frame-sidecouplers 147 and 148 to which the other longitudinal sides of thereturning springs S1 and S2 may be coupled may be provided at respectiveportions of frame main body 141 of the support frame 140.

For example, the wing-side couplers 155 and the frame-side couplers 147and 148 may be provided as protrusions that protrude from the respectivewings 153 or frame main body 141. The returning springs S1 and S2 may befixed by hooks respectively provided at both longitudinal sides of thereturning springs S1 and S2 being hooked to the wing-side couplers 155and the frame-side couplers 147 and 148.

The frame-side couplers 147 and 148 may include a first frame-sidecoupler 147 provided above the wing-side couplers 155 and having thefirst returning spring S1 coupled thereto, and a second frame-sidecoupler 148 provided below the wing-side couplers 155 and having thesecond returning spring S2 coupled thereto. The first returning springS1 may be installed such that one longitudinal side thereof may becoupled to the wing-side coupler 155 and the other longitudinal sidethereof may be coupled to the first frame-side coupler 147. The secondreturning spring S2 may be installed such that one longitudinal sidethereof may be coupled to the other wing-side coupler 155 and the otherlongitudinal side thereof may be coupled to the second frame-sidecoupler 148.

When an external force is not applied, elastic forces of the firstreturning spring S1 and the second returning spring S2 installed asabove may be balanced, and accordingly, the knob ring 120 may bemaintained at an initial position. Because the actuating ring 150 andthe knob ring 120 are integrally rotated, the knob ring 120 may bemaintained at an initial position due to the elastic forces of thereturning springs S1 and S2 connected to the actuating ring 150. Theknob ring 120 maintained at the initial position may be rotated at apredetermined angle clockwise or counterclockwise, and when an externalforce is released while the knob ring 120 is rotated, the knob ring 120may be returned to its original or initial position due to restorationforces provided by the returning springs S1 and S2.

For example, when the knob ring 120 is manipulated counterclockwise, thefirst returning spring S1 elongated due to rotation of the knob ring 120may provide a restoration force for returning the knob ring 120 to itsinitial position, and when the knob ring 120 is manipulated clockwise,the second returning spring S2 elongated due to rotation of the knobring 120 may provide a restoration force for returning the knob ring 120to the initial position.

Referring to FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, the knob ring 120 may include a knobring main body 124, a rear plate 125, and a support tube 126. The knobring main body 124 may form an exterior of the knob ring 120. Forexample, the knob ring main body 124 may be formed in a shape includinga ring shape. The rear plate 125 may be formed in a shape including adisc shape and may be coupled to a rear or second surface of the knobring main body 124. Such a rear plate 125 may include a support plate125 b that enters the front panel c (see FIG. 3) and protrudes toward aninner portion of the cooking appliance. A support hole 125 c configuredto form a path for the adjusting shaft 194 (see FIG. 3) to pass throughthe knob ring 120, and support the adjusting shaft 194 may be providedin the support plate 125 b.

The support tube 126 provided to support the adjusting shaft 194 may becoupled to the rear plate 125. The support tube 126 may include a flange126 a coupled to the rear plate 125, a tapered tube 126 b extending fromthe flange 126 a, and a support rib 126 d extending more than or pastthe tapered tube 126 b. The tapered tube 126 b may have a tapered shapein which a diameter thereof becomes narrower away from the flange 126 a,and may include a cap 126 c provided at an end thereof and configured tosupport the adjusting shaft 194. In the knob ring 120 including theabove-described configurations, a two-point support structure in whichthe adjusting shaft 194 is supported at the support hole 125 c and thecap 126 c may be provided.

Because the adjusting shaft 194 is installed to be movable by a jointinstead of being restricted to a predetermined position, a structurecapable of stably supporting the adjusting shaft 194 may be necessary.For this, the two-point support structure, in which the adjusting shaft194 is supported at the support hole 125 c and the cap 126 c, may beprovided by the knob ring 120 such that the adjusting shaft 194 may bestably supported. In addition to the support structure configured tosupport the adjusting shaft 194 at two or more points, the knob ring 120may also provide a support structure capable of supporting a front endof a gear coupled to the adjusting shaft 194.

The display 123 capable of displaying a heating power or a timer timemay be provided at the knob ring 120. The display 123 may be coupled tothe knob ring main body 124 via a display housing 122, and a finishingcap 121 may be coupled to an outer portion of the display device 123.The finishing cap 121 may be formed with a transparent or translucentmaterial to allow information displayed on the display 123 to be viewedfrom an outside.

FIG. 8 is a rear view of the knob assembly, FIG. 9 is a view of amanipulation state in which a knob ring of the knob assembly in FIG. 8is rotated counterclockwise, and FIG. 10 is a view of a manipulationstate in which the knob ring of the knob assembly in FIG. 8 is rotatedclockwise. For convenience of illustration, the front panel c has beenomitted in FIG. 8 to FIG. 10.

Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 8, the knob 110 and the knob ring 120 maybe coupled to the front or first side of the front panel c, and thesupport frame 140, the actuating ring 150, and the fixing frame 160 maybe coupled to the rear or second side of the front panel c. The fixingframe 160 may be fastened to the rear or second surface of the frontpanel c, and the actuating ring 150 may be fastened to the knob ring 120via the front panel c.

A center of rotation of the actuating ring 150 may coincide with acenter of rotation of the knob 110. The actuating ring 150 may restrictthe center of rotation of the knob 110 to be at a regular orpredetermined position with respect to the front panel c. When theactuating ring 150 is fixed at a regular position with respect to thefront panel c, the knob 110 may be fixed at an accurate position withrespect to the front panel c.

The actuating ring 150 may be inserted into the support frame 140, and aportion thereof may pass through the front panel c and protrude from thefront or first surface of the front panel c. A front or first end of theactuating ring 150 may be formed in a cylindrical shape, and thecylindrical portion may protrude from the front or first surface of thefront panel c.

The knob ring 120 may be coupled to the cylindrical portion of theactuating ring 150 protruding from the front or first surface of thefront panel c. By the knob ring 120 being coupled to the actuating ring150 supported by the support frame 140, a support structure in which theknob ring 120 is supported by the support frame 140 may be formed as aresult.

Manipulation of the knob ring 120 may be recognized by rotation of theactuating ring 150, which may be rotated by being interlocked withrotation of the knob ring 120. As the knob ring 120 is a portion exposedto the outside of the front panel c, it may not be desirable in terms ofappearance for the second rotation sensor E2, configured to sensemanipulation of the knob ring 120, to be installed around the knob ring120 outside the front panel c. Thus, the second rotation sensor E2 maybe installed around or at the actuating ring 150, which is the inside ofthe front panel c, and the second rotation sensor E2 installed may senserotation of the knob ring 120 by sensing rotation of the actuating ring150 inside the front panel c.

The fixing frame 160 configured to prevent the actuating ring 150 frombeing deviated rearward and allow the actuating ring 150 to be stablyoperated may be included. The fixing frame 160 may be provided to crossthe rear or second surface of the actuating ring 150 and be fixed to thesupport frame 140. The fixing frame 160 may prevent the actuating ring150 from being deviated rearward and limit a rotational range of theactuating ring 150 within a designated or predetermined range.

The actuating ring 150 may include the wing 153 formed to extendsideward from a center of the actuating ring 150, and the wing 153 maybe inserted into the fixing frame 160. The wing 153 inserted into thefixing frame 160 may move within a movement-possible region or movementrange inside the fixing frame 160, and movement thereof may be limitedfrom a point interfering with the upper inner wall or the lower innerwall of the fixing frame 160. When the movement range of the wing 153 islimited by the fixing frame 160, the angle of rotation in bothdirections of the actuating ring 150 may be limited to a predeterminedrange. By applying a structure in which the wing 153 is provided at eachside of the actuating ring 150, and movement ranges of the wings 153 arelimited at a same position, the rotational range of the actuating ring150 may be more stably limited.

The actuating ring 150 may be connected to the returning springs S1 andS2 configured to provide an elastic force for returning the actuatingring 150, which is rotated to a position spaced apart from an initialposition, to the initial position. Because the actuating ring 150 andthe knob ring 120 are integrally rotated, the knob ring 120 may bemaintained at an initial position due to elastic forces of the returningsprings S1 and S2 connected to the actuating ring 150. The knob ring 120maintained at the initial position may be rotated at a predeterminedangle clockwise or counterclockwise, and when an external force isreleased while the knob ring 120 is rotated, the knob ring 120 may bereturned to the initial position due to restoration forces provided bythe returning springs S1 and S2.

For example, when the actuating ring 150 is rotated counterclockwise dueto manipulation of the knob ring 120 as shown in FIG. 9, the firstreturning spring S1 of the pair of returning springs S1 and S2 mayprovide an elastic force acting clockwise for the actuating ring 150 tobe returned to an initial position. When the actuating ring 150 isrotated clockwise due to manipulation of the knob ring 120 as shown inFIG. 10, the second returning spring S2 may provide an elastic forceacting counterclockwise for the actuating ring 150 to be returned to theinitial position.

Referring to FIG. 3, the knob assembly may include the joint 170installed between the valve assembly 190 and the knob 110. The joint 170may be a joint provided to be movable in vertical and horizontaldirections to transmit power in an axial direction. In contrast to astructure in which the valve shaft 194 a included in the valve assembly190 is directly connected to the knob, a structure in which a separateknob shaft 194 b is provided at the knob 110, and the valve shaft 194 aand the knob shaft 194 b are connected to each other with the joint 170may be provided.

Such a structure is a structure in which a tolerance of the valve shaft194 a that occurs in the valve assembly 190 may be absorbed by the joint170. Therefore, even when the valve shaft 194 a is misaligned due totolerance, the valve shaft 194 a may be assembled at accurate or correct(predetermined) positions to the front panel c of the knob 110 and theknob ring 120, and accordingly, the knob 110 may be assembled at aregular or correct position at the front panel c.

In other words, the knob 110 and the knob ring 120 may be assembled atregular or correct (predetermined) positions with respect to the frontpanel c, and the valve assembly 190 may be assembled or connected to aburner. Accordingly, even when the valve shaft 194 a extending from thevalve assembly 190 assembled to the burner is misaligned at the regularor predetermined position of the front panel c, such misalignment may beabsorbed by the joint 170, thereby allowing the knob 110 and the knobring 120 to be assembled at accurate or correct positions with respectto the front panel c.

Such a structure of the knob assembly may allow the knob 110 and theknob ring 120 to be assembled at regular or predetermined positions withrespect to the front panel c regardless of a tolerance or error that mayoccur when manufacturing the valve shaft, and may facilitate operationsof the knob 110 and the knob ring 120.

Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 11 to FIG. 13, the joint 170 may beinstalled between the valve shaft 194 a and the knob shaft 194 b toconnect the valve shaft 194 a and the knob shaft 194 b to each other,and may include a housing 171, a first shaft support 173, a second shaftsupport 175, an elastic member or spring 177, and coupling shafts 174and 176. The coupling shafts 174 and 176 may include a first couplingshaft 174 and a second coupling shaft 176.

The housing 171 may be formed in a cylindrical shape having apredetermined length and having a hollow or an inner space formedtherein. An insertion hole 171 a configured to allow the inner space ofthe housing 171 to be open to an outside of the housing 171 may beformed at one or a first longitudinal side of the housing 171. At a sidefacing the insertion hole 171 a, that is, at another or secondlongitudinal side of the housing 171, a side plate 171 b configured toblock the other or second longitudinal side of the housing 171 may beprovided. A through-hole 171 c configured to allow the inner space ofthe housing 171 to be open to the outside of the housing 171 may beformed inside the side plate 171 b.

A plurality of slots 172 a and 172 b may be formed in the housing 171.Each of the slots 172 a and 172 b may be in the form of a slot extendingin the longitudinal direction of the housing 171 and having apredetermined width extending in a circumferential direction of thehousing 171 and a predetermined length extending in a longitudinaldirection of the housing 171. A pair of first slots 172 a and a pair ofsecond slots 172 b may be formed in the housing 171.

The pair of first slots 172 a may be formed to respectively pass throughside surfaces of the housing 171 forming a curved surface and to faceeach other when viewed from the one longitudinal side or the otherlongitudinal side of the housing 171. The pair of second slots 172 b maybe formed to respectively pass through the side surfaces of the housing171 forming a curved surface and to face each other, at positionsdifferent from the first slots 172 a, when viewed from the onelongitudinal side or the other longitudinal side of the housing 171.When viewed from the one longitudinal side or the other longitudinalside of the housing 171, the pair of first slots 172 a and the pair ofsecond slots 172 b may be arranged to form the shape of a cross.

A pair of first coupling shafts 174 arranged in a line at the firstshaft support 173 may be inserted into the pair of first slots 172 a,which may be provided to face each other, to be linearly movable androtatable in the longitudinal direction of the housing 171. A pair ofsecond coupling shafts 176 arranged in a line at the second shaftsupport 175 may be inserted into the pair of second slots 172 b, whichmay be provided to face each other, to be linearly movable and rotatablein the longitudinal direction of the housing 171.

By fitting and coupling between the pair of first slots 172 a and thefirst coupling shafts 174, the first shaft support 173 may be linearlymovable and rotatable in the housing 171. By fitting and couplingbetween the pair of second slots 172 b and the second coupling shafts176, the second shaft support 175 may be coupled to be linearly movableand rotatable in the housing 171.

The first shaft support 173 may be inserted into the inner space of thehousing 171 through the insertion hole 171 a. The first shaft support173 may be connected to any one of the valve shaft 194 a and the knobshaft 194 b, and may include a support main body 173 a, a first couplingshaft 174, and a shaft fixing portion 173 b. For example, the firstshaft support 173 may be connected to the valve shaft 194 a. The supportmain body 173 a may be inserted into the inner space of the housing 171and may be coupled to the housing 171 by the pair of first couplingshafts 174 arranged in a line to be integrally moved and rotated withthe first coupling shafts 174.

The shaft fixing portion 173 b may extend in the longitudinal directionof the housing 171 from the support main body 173 a, may protrude to theoutside of the housing 171, and may be integrally moved and rotated withthe support main body 173 a. The shaft fixing portion 173 b may be aportion provided to connect the first shaft support 173 and the valveshaft 194 a, and the first shaft support 173 and the valve shaft 194 amay be connected by the valve shaft 194 a being coupled to the shaftfixing portion 173 b. The shaft fixing portion 173 b may protrude to theoutside of the housing 171 through the other longitudinal side of thehousing 171, may be coupled to the valve shaft 194 a outside the housing171, and may pass through the side plate 171 b through a path secured bythe through-hole 171 c formed to pass through the inside of the sideplate 171 b to protrude to the outside of the housing 171.

When the support main body 173 a is rotated about the first couplingshaft 174 by rotation of the first coupling shaft 174, a direction inwhich an end of the shaft fixing portion 173 b faces may be changed byan angle at which the support main body 173 a is rotated. A change inthe direction in which the end of the shaft fixing portion 173 b facesmay be indicated as a change in a posture of the first shaft support173.

The second shaft support 175 may be inserted into the inner space of thehousing 171 through the insertion hole 171 a and may be provided betweenthe insertion hole 171 a and the first shaft support 173. The secondshaft support 175 may be connected to the other one of the valve shaft194 a and the knob shaft 194 b, and may include a support main body 175a, a second coupling shaft 176, and a shaft fixing portion 175 b. Forexample, the second shaft support 175 may be connected to the knob shaft194 b. The support main body 175 a may be inserted into the inner spaceof the housing 171 and may be coupled to the housing 171 by the pair ofsecond coupling shafts 176 arranged in a line to be integrally moved androtated with the second coupling shafts 176.

The shaft fixing portion 175 b may extend in the longitudinal directionof the housing 171 from the support main body 175 a, may protrude to theoutside of the housing 171, and may be integrally moved and rotated withthe support main body 175 a. The shaft fixing portion 175 b may be aportion provided to connect the second shaft support 175 and the knobshaft 194 b, and the second shaft support 175 and the knob shaft 194 bmay be connected by the knob shaft 194 b being coupled to the shaftfixing portion 175 b. The shaft fixing portion 175 b may protrude to theoutside of the housing 171 through the one longitudinal side of thehousing 171, may be coupled to the knob shaft 194 b outside the housing171, and may protrude to the outside of the housing 171 through a pathsecured by the insertion hole 171 a.

When the support main body 175 a is rotated about the second couplingshaft 176 by rotation of the second coupling shaft 176, a direction inwhich an end of the shaft fixing portion 175 b faces may be changed byan angle at which the support main body 175 a is rotated. A change inthe direction in which the end of the shaft fixing portion 175 b facesmay be indicated as a change in a posture of the second shaft support175.

The spring 177 may be inserted into the inner space of the housing 171through the insertion hole 171 a and may be provided between the firstshaft support 173 and the second shaft support 175. The spring 177 mayprovide an elastic force for returning positions of the first shaftsupport 173 and the second shaft support 175 changed due to linearmovement of the coupling shafts 174 and 176 and postures of the firstshaft support 173 and the second shaft support 175 changed due torotation of the coupling shafts 174 and 176 to original or initialstates.

For example, the spring 177 may include a coil spring having a lengthextending in the longitudinal direction of the housing 171. One or afirst longitudinal side of the spring 177 may be coupled to the firstshaft support 173, and another or second longitudinal side of the spring177 may be coupled to the second shaft support 175. The spring 177 maybe provided to be elastically stretched in the longitudinal directionand to be elastically bent in a rotating direction of the first shaftsupport 173 or the second shaft support 175.

A fitting groove g to which the one longitudinal side of the spring 177may be fitted and coupled and another fitting groove g to which theother longitudinal side of the spring 177 may be fitted and coupled maybe respectively formed at surfaces of the first shaft support 173 andthe second shaft support 175 facing each other, for example, at surfacesof the support main body 173 a and the support main body 175 a facingeach other. The spring 177 coupled to such fitting grooves g may bestably coupled to the first shaft support 173 and the second shaftsupport 175 while movement of the both longitudinal sides thereof may berestrained so that a position of the spring 177 with respect to thesupport main body 173 a may not be changed.

In the joint 170 formed by the above-described configuration, the firstshaft support 173 may be coupled to the housing 171 to be rotatable inany one of a vertical direction and a horizontal direction (see FIG.14), and the second shaft support 175 may be coupled to the housing 171to be rotatable in the other one of the vertical direction and thehorizontal direction (see FIG. 15). That is, the joint 170 may connectthe valve shaft 194 a and the knob shaft 194 b with a single flexibleshaft while the first shaft support 173 is connected to the valve shaft194 a and the second shaft support 175 is connected to the knob shaft194 b, and may transmit or transfer rotation of the knob shaft 194 b tothe valve shaft 194 a.

When a direction in which the valve shaft 194 a extends or moves and adirection in which the knob shaft 194 b extends or moves do not coincidewith each other due to a tolerance of the valve shaft 194 a that occursin the valve assembly 190, the joint 170 may absorb the tolerance of thevalve shaft 194 a that occurs in the valve assembly 190 by a posture ofat least one of the first shaft support 173 or the second shaft support175 being changed and an angle of connection between the first shaftsupport 173 and the second shaft support 175 being changed.

In this case, if the joint 170 is connected to the valve shaft 194 a andthe knob shaft 194 b, the angle of connection between the first shaftsupport 173 and the second shaft support 175 may not have to be adjustedby a worker, and postures of the first shaft support 173 and the secondshaft support 175 may be changed to be suitable for connecting the valveshaft 194 a and the knob shaft 194 b when the valve shaft 194 a and theknob shaft 194 b are respectively connected to both ends of the joint170. As the postures of the first shaft support 173 and the second shaftsupport 175 may be maintained or changed by an elastic force provided bythe spring 177, a separate task for fixing the postures may not berequired.

The joint 170 having the above-described configuration may be assembledby the following method. First, after the first shaft support 173 istilted and inserted into the housing 171 through the insertion hole 171a, the first coupling shaft 174 may be fitted to the first slot 172 afor the housing 171 and the first shaft support 173 to be assembled.When a direction in which the first shaft support 173 is rotated isassumed as a horizontal direction, a direction in which the first shaftsupport 173 is tilted to be inserted into the housing 171 may be assumedas a vertical direction.

Then, the spring 177 may be inserted into the housing 171 through theinsertion hole 171 a, the second shaft support 175 may be tilted andinserted into the housing 171, and the second coupling shaft 176 may befitted to the second slot 172 b for the housing 171 and the second shaftsupport 175 to be assembled. When a direction in which the second shaftsupport 175 is rotated is assumed as a vertical direction, a directionin which the second shaft support 175 is tilted to be inserted into thehousing 171 is assumed as a horizontal direction. In such a process, thespring 177 may be stably coupled to the first shaft support 173 and thesecond shaft support 175 while both longitudinal ends thereof may befitted to the fitting groove g, and movement of the both longitudinalsides may be restricted.

As described above, the joint 170 may be assembled by fitting andassembling the first shaft support 173 into the housing 171, insertingthe spring 177 into the housing 171, and then fitting and assembling thesecond shaft support 175 into the housing 171. The joint 170 may beeasily and rapidly assembled just by performing the above-describedsequentially fitting tasks without using a separate fastening means oradhesive. As the joint 170 may be formed with four components, thecomponents may be easily manufactured and managed, and the joint 170 maybe more easily and rapidly assembled. When assembling the joint 170 iscompleted, as the fitted and coupled states of the first shaft support173 and the second shaft support 175 are stably maintained by an elasticforce provided by the spring 177, the joint 170 may not arbitrarilyrelease while the joint 170 is being used.

The joint 170 may absorb a position error of the valve shaft 194 abetween the knob shaft 194 b and the valve shaft 194 a, and may beprovided in a structure in which the first shaft support 173 and thesecond shaft support 175 may be rotated to absorb a position error ofthe valve shaft 194 a. However, a structure for limiting rotation rangesof the first shaft support 173 and the second shaft support 175, aposture change range of the first shaft support 173 and the second shaftsupport 175, to be within a necessary range according to characteristicsof a product in which the joint 170 is installed may be necessary.

Referring to FIG. 11 to FIG. 14, the posture change range of the firstshaft support 173 may be determined by a size of the through-hole 171 c.The first shaft support 173 may be rotated only within a range in whichinterference may not occur between the shaft fixing portion 173 b andthe inner peripheral surface of the side plate 171 b, and furtherrotation of the first shaft support 173 may be limited from a point atwhich interference may occur between the shaft fixing portion 173 b andthe inner peripheral surface of the side plate 171 b. Therefore, theposture change range of the first shaft support 173 may be determined bythe size of the through-hole 171 c that determines the size of a pathfor the shaft fixing portion 173 b to pass through the side plate 171 b.

In other words, rotation of the first shaft support 173 or posturechange of the first shaft support 173, may be limited to a range betweena point at which interference between the inner peripheral surface ofthe side plate 171 b and the shaft fixing portion 173 b occurs when thefirst shaft support 173 is rotated in one direction and a point at whichinterference between the inner peripheral surface of the side plate 171b and the shaft fixing portion 173 b occurs when the first shaft support173 is rotated in the other direction.

The size of the through-hole 171 c may be determined so that an innerdiameter of the side plate 171 b at which the through-hole 171 c isformed may be larger than an outer diameter of the shaft fixing portion173 b and may be smaller than an inner diameter of the housing 171. Thesize of the through-hole 171 c may be properly adjusted according to theposture change range of the first shaft support 173 attempted to be set.That is, the posture change range of the first shaft support 173 may beexpanded by increasing the size of the through-hole 171 c to be closerto the inner diameter of the housing 171, or the posture change range ofthe first shaft support 173 may be reduced by reducing the size of thethrough-hole 171 c to be closer to the outer diameter of the shaftfixing portion 173 b.

Referring to FIG. 11 to FIG. 13 and FIG. 15, the second coupling shaft176 provided in the second shaft support 175 may include a rotary shaft176 a and a stopper 176 b. The rotary shaft 176 a may be a portion thatoccupies most of the regions of the second coupling shaft 176, and maybe rotatably inserted into the second slot 172 b to be rotatably coupledto the housing 171. In the first coupling shaft 174, the entire firstcoupling shaft 174 may be formed only of a rotary shaft.

The stopper 176 b may be formed to protrude to the outside of the rotaryshaft 176 a, and a position of the stopper 176 b inside the second slot172 b may be changed according to rotation of the rotary shaft 176 a.The stopper 176 b may be provided in the second slot 172 b to interferewith an inner wall 171 d of the housing 171 formed by the second slot172 b at a predetermined position.

The second slot 172 b may be formed with a width corresponding to anouter diameter of the rotary shaft 176 a. By the second slot 172 b beingformed such that the width of the second slot 172 b may be equal to theouter diameter of the rotary shaft 176 a, the second shaft support 175and the housing 171 may be coupled so that a jolt does not occur whenthe second shaft support 175 is moved or rotated in the housing 171.This may also be applied to coupling between the first shaft support 173and the housing 171.

The stopper 176 b may be formed to protrude toward the inside of thesecond slot 172 b, and the stopper 176 b may protrude by a widthnarrower than the width of the second slot 172 b. The stopper 176 b maybe rotated along with the second coupling shaft 176 when the secondcoupling shaft 176 is rotated, and when the second coupling shaft 176 isrotated by a predetermined angle or more, the stopper 176 b mayinterfere with the inner wall 171 d of the housing 171 formed by thesecond slot 172 b, and further rotation of the second coupling shaft 176may be limited or stopped.

Rotation of the second shaft support 175 or posture change of the secondshaft support 175 may be limited to a range between a point at whichinterference between the inner wall 171 d of the housing 171 and thestopper 176 b occurs when the second shaft support 175 is rotated in onedirection and a point at which interference between the inner wall ofthe housing and the stopper 176 b occurs when the second shaft support175 is rotated in the other direction.

As another example, instead of the stopper 176 b being provided in thesecond coupling shaft 176, the structure for limiting the posture changerange of the second shaft support 175 may also be formed identically asthe structure for limiting the posture change range of the first shaftsupport 173. That is, the structure for limiting the posture changerange of the second shaft support 175 may also have the form in whichone longitudinal portion of the housing 171 in which the insertion hole171 a is formed may be covered with a side plate 171 b, and the size ofthe through-hole 171 c formed inside the side plate 171 b may beadjusted to adjust the posture change range of the second shaft support175.

However, when the structure for limiting the posture change range of thesecond shaft support 175 is formed as discussed, unlike the side plate171 b integrally formed with the housing 171 at the other longitudinalportion of the housing 171, the side plate at the one longitudinalportion of the housing 171 may need to be in the form of a separate capseparable from the housing 171. This is because, when the side plate atthe one longitudinal portion of the housing 171 is also integrallyformed with the housing 171, a path for components such as the firstshaft support 173, the second shaft support 175, and the spring 177 tobe inserted into the housing 171 to be assembled to the housing 171 maybe blocked.

However, when the side plate at the one longitudinal portion of thehousing 171 is in the form of a separate cap, the number of componentsfor manufacturing the joint 170 may increase as a result, and the numberof assembly processes may also be increased corresponding to theincreased number of components. Therefore, component management becomesmore difficult, and the cost and time required for manufacturing thejoint 170 may also be increased.

The joint 170 may have a structure in which, instead of adding acomponent in the form of a separate cap, the stopper 176 b for limitingrotation of the second shaft support 175 may be added in the form of aprotrusion integrally formed with the rotating shaft 176 a. In this way,a structure for adjusting the posture change range of the second shaftsupport 175 may be formed without adding a separate component. As thejoint 170 may be assembled with a smaller number of components, forexample, four components including the housing 171, the first shaftsupport 173, the second shaft support 175, and the spring 177, thecomponents may be easily managed and assembled, and the cost and timerequired for manufacturing the joint 170 may be reduced.

Although it has been described that the joint 170 may be provided in theknob assembly of the cooking appliance, the embodiments are not limitedthereto. The joint 170 may be used for different purposes at portionsother than the knob assembly in the cooking appliance, or may be usedfor the purpose of transmitting a rotary of a knob or transmitting powerof a drive device, such as, for example, a motor in a different type ofappliance other than the cooking appliance. The joint 170 may be usefulin an environment in which it is difficult for a driving shaft and adriven shaft to be connected in a line in an appliance in which a largenumber of components may need to be provided in a narrow inner space.

According to embodiments disclosed herein, by respectively connectingtwo shafts to both ends of a joint when connecting the two shafts, anangle of connection between a first shaft support and a second shaftsupport may be suitable for connecting the two shafts, and such a statemay be maintained or changed according to circumstances by an elasticforce of an spring. Therefore, a position error between the two shaftsmay be effectively absorbed without a separate task for adjusting theangle of connection between the first shaft support and the second shaftsupport and a separate task for fixing an adjusted angle of connectionbetween the first shaft support and the second shaft support.Accordingly, two components which may be difficult to be connected bythe same shaft may be effectively connected to each other. Further, ajoint may be installed without a separate task for adjusting an angle ofconnection and a separate task for fixing the adjusted angle ofconnection, and the joint may be assembled using only a small number ofcomponents so that component management and assembly may be facilitated,and cost and time required in manufacturing the joint may be reduced.

Embodiments disclosed herein may provide a joint with an improvedstructure to effectively connect two components which may be difficultto be connected by a same shaft and to be easily and rapidlymanufactured with a low cost. Embodiments disclosed herein may alsoprovide a knob assembly and an appliance having a joint.

According to embodiments disclosed herein, a joint may include a housingformed in a cylindrical shape having a predetermined length and having ahollow formed therein and having an insertion hole formed at onelongitudinal side to allow the hollow to be open to an outside of thehousing, a first shaft support inserted into the housing through theinsertion hole, a second shaft support inserted into the housing throughthe insertion hole and provided between the insertion hole and the firstshaft support, and a coupling shaft provided at each of the first shaftsupport and the second shaft to rotatably couple the first shaft supportor the second shaft support to the housing. A slot having apredetermined width extending in a circumferential direction of thehousing and a predetermined length extending in a longitudinal directionof the housing may be formed in the housing, the coupling shaft providedin the second support may include a rotating shaft rotatably insertedinto the slot and rotatably coupled to the housing, and a stopper formedto protrude from an outside of the rotating shaft and whose positioninside the slot may be changed according to rotation of the rotatingshaft, and the stopper may be provided in the slot so that the stoppermay interfere with an inner wall of the housing formed by the slot at apredetermined position.

The slot may include a pair of first slots formed to respectively passthrough side surfaces of the housing, provided to face each other whenviewed from one longitudinal side or the other longitudinal side of thehousing, and having the pair of coupling shafts provided at the firstshaft support rotatably inserted thereinto, and a pair of second slotsformed to respectively pass through the side surfaces of the housing,provided to face each other at different positions from the first slotswhen viewed from one longitudinal side or the other longitudinal side ofthe housing, and having the pair of coupling shafts provided at thesecond shaft support rotatably inserted thereinto.

The second slots may be formed with a width corresponding to an outerdiameter of the rotating shaft, and the stopper may be formed toprotrude in a width narrower than that of the second slots. At least oneof the first shaft support and the second shaft support may include asupport main body inserted into the housing and coupled to the housingby the pair of coupling shafts arranged in a line to integrally be movedand rotated with the coupling shafts, and a shaft fixing portionextending in the longitudinal direction of the housing from the supportmain body to protrude to the outside of the housing.

A side plate configured to block the other longitudinal side of thehousing may be provided at the other longitudinal side of the housing, athrough-hole through which the shaft fixing portion passes may be formedinside the side plate, and an inner diameter of the side plate havingthe through-hole formed therein may be larger than the outer diameter ofthe shaft fixing portion and smaller than the inner diameter of thehousing.

Rotation of the first shaft support may be limited to a range between apoint at which interference occurs between an inner peripheral surfaceof the side plate and the shaft fixing portion when the first shaftsupport is rotated in one direction and a point at which interferenceoccurs between the inner peripheral surface of the side plate and theshaft fixing portion when the first shaft support is rotated in theother direction.

The joint may further include an spring provided between the first shaftsupport and the second shaft support and configured to provide anelastic force for returning positions of the first shaft support and thesecond shaft support changed due to movement of the coupling shaft andpostures of the first shaft support and the second shaft support changeddue to rotation of the coupling shaft to original states. The spring mayinclude a coil spring having one longitudinal side coupled to the firstshaft support and the other longitudinal side coupled to the secondshaft support, and provided to be elastically stretched in alongitudinal direction and to be elastically bent in a rotatingdirection of the first shaft support or the second shaft support.

A fitting groove to which the one longitudinal side of the spring may befitted and coupled and a fitting groove to which the other longitudinalside of the spring may be fitted and coupled may be respectively formedat surfaces of the first shaft support and the second shaft supportfacing each other. Rotation of the second shaft support may be limitedto a range between a point at which interference occurs between an innerwall of the housing and the stopper when the second shaft support isrotated in one direction and a point at which interference occursbetween the inner wall of the housing and the stopper when the secondshaft support is rotated in the other direction.

According to embodiments disclosed herein, a knob assembly may include avalve assembly having a valve shaft, a knob for operating the valveshaft, a knob shaft connected to the knob, and a joint. The joint mayinclude one of a first shaft support and a second shaft supportconnected to the valve shaft and the other one of the first shaftsupport and the second shaft support connected to the knob shaft toconnect the knob shaft and the valve shaft to each other.

According to embodiments disclosed herein, an appliance may includes aknob assembly including a valve assembly having a valve shaft, a knobfor operating the valve shaft, a knob shaft connected to the knob, and ajoint. The joint may include one of a first shaft support and a secondshaft support connected to the valve shaft and the other one of thefirst shaft support and the second shaft support connected to the knobshaft to connect the knob shaft and the valve shaft to each other.

It will be understood that when an element or layer is referred to asbeing “on” another element or layer, the element or layer can bedirectly on another element or layer or intervening elements or layers.In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on”another element or layer, there are no intervening elements or layerspresent. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and allcombinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, third,etc., may be used herein to describe various elements, components,regions, layers and/or sections, these elements, components, regions,layers and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These termsare only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer orsection from another region, layer or section. Thus, a first element,component, region, layer or section could be termed a second element,component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachingsof the present invention.

Spatially relative terms, such as “lower”, “upper” and the like, may beused herein for ease of description to describe the relationship of oneelement or feature to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated inthe figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms areintended to encompass different orientations of the device in use oroperation, in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. Forexample, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements describedas “lower” relative to other elements or features would then be oriented“upper” relative the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplaryterm “lower” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. Thedevice may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at otherorientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used hereininterpreted accordingly.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Asused herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof.

Embodiments of the disclosure are described herein with reference tocross-section illustrations that are schematic illustrations ofidealized embodiments (and intermediate structures) of the disclosure.As such, variations from the shapes of the illustrations as a result,for example, of manufacturing techniques and/or tolerances, are to beexpected. Thus, embodiments of the disclosure should not be construed aslimited to the particular shapes of regions illustrated herein but areto include deviations in shapes that result, for example, frommanufacturing.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientificterms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by oneof ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will befurther understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly useddictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that isconsistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art andwill not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unlessexpressly so defined herein.

Any reference in this specification to “one embodiment,” “anembodiment,” “example embodiment,” etc., means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the invention. Theappearances of such phrases in various places in the specification arenot necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Further, when aparticular feature, structure, or characteristic is described inconnection with any embodiment, it is submitted that it is within thepurview of one skilled in the art to effect such feature, structure, orcharacteristic in connection with other ones of the embodiments.

Although embodiments have been described with reference to a number ofillustrative embodiments thereof, it should be understood that numerousother modifications and embodiments can be devised by those skilled inthe art that will fall within the spirit and scope of the principles ofthis disclosure. More particularly, various variations and modificationsare possible in the component parts and/or arrangements of the subjectcombination arrangement within the scope of the disclosure, the drawingsand the appended claims. In addition to variations and modifications inthe component parts and/or arrangements, alternative uses will also beapparent to those skilled in the art.

This application relates to U.S. application Ser. Nos. ______ (AttorneyDocket No. DAE-0026); ______ (Attorney Docket No. DAE-0027); ______(Attorney Docket No. DAE-0045); and ______ (Attorney Docket No.DAE-0046); all filed on ______, which are hereby incorporated byreference in their entirety. Further, one of ordinary skill in the artwill recognize that features disclosed in these above-noted applicationsmay be combined in any combination with features disclosed herein.

1. A joint, comprising: a housing formed in a cylindrical shape having apredetermined length and having a hollow inner space; a first shaftsupport provided in the housing; a second shaft support provided in thehousing a prescribed distance from the first shaft support; and a firstpair of coupling shafts provided on the first shaft support and a secondpair of coupling shafts provided on the a second shaft support, whereinthe housing includes a plurality of slots having a predetermined widthextending in a circumferential direction of the housing and apredetermined length extending in a longitudinal direction of thehousing to accommodate the first pair of coupling shafts and the secondpair of coupling shafts, wherein the first shaft support and the secondshaft support are configured to pivot relative to the housing about thecoupling shafts and to slide in the longitudinal direction.
 2. The jointof claim 1, wherein the plurality of slots includes: a pair of firstslots formed through side surfaces of the housing, provided to face eachother when viewed from a first longitudinal side or a secondlongitudinal side of the housing, the first pair of coupling shafts ofthe first shaft support rotatably inserted into the first slots; and apair of second slots formed through the side surfaces of the housing,provided to face each other at different positions from the first slotswhen viewed from the first longitudinal side or the second longitudinalside of the housing, the second pair of coupling shafts of the secondshaft support rotatably inserted into the second slots.
 3. The joint ofclaim 2, wherein the second pair of coupling shafts has a body and astopper that protrudes from the body, and wherein the pair of secondslots have a width less than a width of the second pair of couplingshafts that includes the stopper.
 4. The joint of claim 1 wherein atleast one of the first shaft support or the second shaft supportincludes: a support main body inserted into the housing and coupled tothe housing by the pair of coupling shafts arranged in a line tointegrally be moved and rotated with the pair of coupling shafts; and ashaft fixing portion extending in the longitudinal direction of thehousing from the support main body to protrude to the outside of thehousing.
 5. The joint of claim 4, wherein: an insertion hole is formedat a first longitudinal side of the housing to allow the hollow innerspace to be open to an outside of the housing, a side plate configuredto block a second longitudinal side of the housing is provided at thesecond longitudinal side of the housing; a through-hole through whichthe shaft fixing portion passes is formed inside the side plate; and aninner diameter of the side plate having the through-hole formed thereinis larger than an outer diameter of the shaft fixing portion and smallerthan an inner diameter of the housing.
 6. The joint of claim 5, whereinpivoting of the first shaft support is limited to a range between apoint at which interference occurs between an inner peripheral surfaceof the side plate and the shaft fixing portion when the first shaftsupport is pivoted in a first direction and a point at whichinterference occurs between the inner peripheral surface of the sideplate and the shaft fixing portion when the first shaft support ispivoted in a second direction.
 7. The joint of claim 1, furthercomprising a spring provided between the first shaft support and thesecond shaft support and configured to provide an elastic force torestore positions of the first shaft support and the second shaftsupport.
 8. The joint of claim 7, wherein the spring includes a coilspring having a first longitudinal side coupled to the first shaftsupport and a second longitudinal side coupled to the second shaftsupport, and provided to be elastically stretched in the longitudinaldirection and to be elastically bent in a pivoting direction of thefirst shaft support or the second shaft support.
 9. The joint of claim8, wherein a first fitting groove to which the first longitudinal sideof the spring is fitted and coupled and a second fitting groove to whichthe second longitudinal side of the spring is fitted and coupled arerespectively formed at surfaces of the first shaft support and thesecond shaft support facing each other.
 10. The joint of claim 1,wherein pivoting of the second shaft support is limited to a rangebetween a point at which interference occurs between an inner wall ofthe housing and the stopper when the second shaft support is pivoted ina first direction and a point at which interference occurs between theinner wall of the housing and the stopper when the second shaft supportis pivoted in a second direction.
 11. A knob assembly comprising: avalve assembly having a valve shaft; a knob that operates the valveshaft; a knob shaft connected to the knob; and the joint according toclaim 1, wherein the joint has one of the first shaft support or thesecond shaft support connected to the valve shaft and another one of thefirst shaft support or the second shaft support connected to the knobshaft to connect the knob shaft and the valve shaft to each other. 12.An appliance including the knob assembly according to claim
 11. 13. Ajoint, comprising: a housing formed in a cylindrical shape andincluding: a hollow inner space; and a plurality of slots formed atpositions along a circumferential direction of the housing and having apredetermined length extending in a longitudinal direction of thehousing; a first shaft support provided in the housing; and a secondshaft support provided in the housing, the first shaft support and thesecond shaft support facing opposite directions; wherein the first shaftsupport includes first coupling shafts and the second shaft supportincludes second coupling shafts, the first and second coupling shaftsradially extending and provided in the plurality of slots, and whereinthe first shaft support and the second shaft support are configured topivot relative to the housing and to move in the longitudinal directionof the housing relative to each other.
 14. The joint of claim 13,wherein the plurality of slots includes: a pair of first slots formedthrough side surfaces of the housing, the first coupling shafts providedin the pair of first slots; and a pair of second slots formed throughthe side surfaces of the housing, the second coupling shafts provided inthe pair of second slots. 15-16. (canceled)
 17. The joint of claim 13,further comprising a spring provided between the first shaft support andthe second shaft support and configured to provide an elastic force torestore positions of the first shaft support and the second shaftsupport.
 18. The joint of claim 13, wherein pivoting of the second shaftsupport is limited to a range between a point at which interferenceoccurs between an inner wall of the housing and each of the plurality ofstoppers when the second shaft support is pivoted in a first directionand a point at which interference occurs between the inner wall of thehousing and each of the plurality of stoppers when the second shaftsupport is pivoted in a second direction.
 19. A knob assemblycomprising: a valve assembly having a valve shaft; a knob that operatesthe valve shaft; a knob shaft connected to the knob; and the jointaccording to claim 13, wherein the first shaft support of the joint isconnected to the valve shaft and the second shaft support of the jointis connected to the knob shaft to connect the knob shaft and the valveshaft to each other.
 20. An appliance including the joint and the knobassembly according to claim
 19. 21. The joint of claim 1, wherein thesecond pair of coupling shafts includes: a body having a round shape;and a stopper that protrudes radially from the body, wherein the slotscorresponding to the second pair of coupling shafts have a widthcorresponding to the round shape of the body to allow rotation andlateral movement of the second coupling shafts in the slot, wherein awidth at the stopper is greater than a width of the slot such that thestopper is configured to contact the housing in the slots to restrictmovement of the second shaft support relative to the housing.
 22. Thejoint of claim 13, wherein the second coupling shafts include: a bodyhaving a round shape; and a stopper that protrudes radially from thebody, wherein the slots corresponding to the second coupling shafts havea width corresponding to the round shape of the body to allow rotationand lateral movement of the second coupling shafts in the slot, whereina width at the stopper is greater than a width of the slot such that thestopper is configured to contact the housing in the slots to restrictmovement of the second shaft support relative to the housing.